Training Training updates 2026.

[RobJD]

Having Cochran come on would be more than handy. Here’s hoping.

Also enjoying the reports about the new ruck coach, Stafford. I don’t recall hearing that much about the ruck training and coaching in the past. Maybe he can make a difference too, with our young rucks in waiting.

Strategy around the 23rd man will be interesting - could be that we're not going to play two rucks as some teams look to be doing and rather we'll put time into forwards and backs taking some of the stoppage work to allow Cameron to have a break.

If Cameron plays upto 80% game time with a chop out from the forwards and backs, then we'll be able to have an additional mid-sized player in the side - that will benefit the likes of Howe, Sidey, Pendles and Crisp who would benefit from less time on the field.

 

[SchuPie]

Track watch: Uncapped Collingwood defender boosts Opening Round debut chances as recruit continues to shine

The Pies were put through their paces on a hot Monday at Olympic Park, with a young defender impressing observers.

www.zerohanger.com

Big wraps on Cochran.

I'll repeat, IMO, best of our selection from that draft
Dude could play a variety of positions

• KPP at either end
• Wing
• Mid?

 

[Jen2310]

Dont expect the draftees to be training tomorrow - Looks like the AFL player induction conference is today and usually goes for a couple days, unless they manage to fit it in one day this year.

 

[TradeDraft]

Friday February 20
Collingwood v Greater Western Sydney, La Trobe University Sports Park (Bundoora), time TBC

 

[ksardog]

I'll repeat, IMO, best of our selection from that draft
Dude could play a variety of positions

• KPP at either end
• Wing
• Mid?

potentially, see him more of a defender though
but i really want to see him using his height to intercept mark a lot more, pointless being tall if you dont use it to your advantage

 

[sr36]

I'll repeat, IMO, best of our selection from that draft
Dude could play a variety of positions

• KPP at either end
• Wing
• Mid?

I'll be happy if he becomes AFL standard in one role.

 

[Jen2310]

 

[SchuPie]

I'll be happy if he becomes AFL standard in one role.

Agree
Intercepting / running defender would be just the ticket

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

anybody who’s actually watching a lot of training got an early call for our best/ most likely for immediate impact/ most impressive draftee so far?

 

[Jen2310]

Now I think about and watching some footage from yesterday and then rewatching the freo game, I think the only time we'll see Josh rotate through the middle is if Nick goes to half back. There would need to be some rotations with Pendles down back.

 

[Jen2310]

anybody who’s actually watching a lot of training got an early call for our best/ most likely for immediate impact/ most impressive draftee so far?

Immediate impact, probably Anderson. Most impressive, toss up between Prindable and Swadling. Saxena has been looking good in moments, so I think he'll be really fun to watch.

 

[DERKADERRR]

Now I think about and watching some footage from yesterday and then rewatching the freo game, I think the only time we'll see Josh rotate through the middle is if Nick goes to half back. There would need to be some rotations with Pendles down back.

Could they be building Josh's fitness by having him down back for the moment? Didn't he have an interrupted pre season?

 

[Jen2310]

Could they be building Josh's fitness by having him down back for the moment? Didn't he have an interrupted pre season?

Yeah he has been dealing with something. But no, I don't think the plan was ever to make him as a mid. Especially when we drafted a 22 year old ready made mid and two more to add. Cameo at best. They'd more likely push crisp into more mid time. We have multiple options if you add Perryman.

 

[Jen2310]

Draftees are here. See looks like that player conference is finished

 

[Jen2310]

Sullivan in the black singlet with the rehab group.

 

[Mick F]

Pl

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Clipboard very informative. Than you.

 

[Dead Eye Didak]

Parker, Ed, Reef, HH, Ro Steele and Westy are the 6 that you really hope are fully fledged best 23 by the end of season.

I would like to think Hayes will be pushing to be a fixture in our 23, considering the doubt on Hill playing much footy this season....

 

[Dead Eye Didak]

Immediate impact, probably Anderson. Most impressive, toss up between Prindable and Swadling. Saxena has been looking good in moments, so I think he'll be really fun to watch.

Anderson looked like he's ready to just step in when we drafted him....
I really like Swadling as a player. I think he could be the best out of the group and Prindle-bury looks like a very good footballer with a nice left foot. Would he be the most likely to play first out the draftees?
Saxena just looks exciting. Love to see what he's producing after another 2 pre-seasons under his belt. We definitely have our next match winning small forward here....

 

[Peters_Nuts]

Was able to head down for the drills though had to leave halfway through match play. Have some minor observations though want to caveat that I sometimes couldn't tell who was who thanks to the random numbers and sitting far away. I swear I saw Harrison in 3 drills at once.

• Smit - What a behemoth. In the 1-on-1 drills I didn't see him lose a contest and was positioning his body well. Going to be praying all season that he gets better by foot because he could be a contributor in the senior team in time.
  
  
• Long - Was killing it. Didn't miss a tackle and he looks sharper in congestion. Saw some nice foot skills too which is welcomed.
  
  
• Houston - Still not sold on him playing midfield though looked very good forward of centre and bombed one from 50.
  
  
• Parker - Thought this was Harrison for a while which should tell you that he's put on size. Looked super calm as per usual. Will be disappointed if he doesn't feature in our best 23 early.
  
  
• Prindable - Just echoing what everyone else is saying but he'll feature this year at some stage. Elite left foot and looked like a 3+ year player when training with the other mids.
  
  
• Demattia - Really not sure what to make of him. Trained with the forwards and pressure on the ball carrier was Schultz-esque but his tackles weren't sticking. Had high hopes for him coming in to this year so let's see what the next month brings.
  
  
• Hayes - Definitely looks bigger and is still super fast though missed a fair few handballs and kicks to easy targets. Composure seems an issue so very interested come intraclub time to see him in match play.
  
  
• McCarthy - Absolute twig but great hands! Leads very well and marks the ball at the highest points. Positioned his body well in contest drills v Frampton.
  
  
• Frampton - All of these best 23 articles excluding him need a reality check. Was rock solid for us last season and looked great today. Don't think I saw him lose a contest. Put his name in permanent marker at FB.
  
  
• West - What a presence this kid is. Not much else to say that he leads well and looks solid.
  
  
• Allan - Didn't stand out though didn't do anything wrong. Guess that's all we can ask for as we just want consistency.

 

[BillyElliott]

Anderson looked like he's ready to just step in when we drafted him....
I really like Swadling as a player. I think he could be the best out of the group and Prindle-bury looks like a very good footballer with a nice left foot. Would he be the most likely to play first out the draftees?
Saxena just looks exciting. Love to see what he's producing after another 2 pre-seasons under his belt. We definitely have our next match winning small forward here....

Angus & Sam are the two I'm most excited to see how they go this year too.

Also looking forward to Hayes getting more games.

 

[BillyElliott]

 

[LuckyLee]

Anderson looked like he's ready to just step in when we drafted him....
I really like Swadling as a player. I think he could be the best out of the group and Prindle-bury looks like a very good footballer with a nice left foot. Would he be the most likely to play first out the draftees?
Saxena just looks exciting. Love to see what he's producing after another 2 pre-seasons under his belt. We definitely have our next match winning small forward here....

Whilst the 2024 flag was obviously a brilliant highlight, there has been a slightly boring sameness for a while now in the personnel making up our AFL side. I’m really looking forward to seeing far more new/young players in our senior side, this year and next - regardless of results.

I also hope we don’t wait another two years for Saxena to debut. Some guys will always be small but can still really succeed, eg Bobby Hill and the Jones kid at GWS. If you’re good enough, you’re old/big enough!

 

[Jen2310]

Wed - Mid week session.

Pretty light session on the track, which it being more skills based.

The session begun at 8:45, I assume because of the kids clinic starting at 11am, which they also had to prepare for.
Everyone was on deck, minus Bobby but I think I should stop including him until he does if he does turn up at some point.

Rehab:

Moore
IQ
Beau
Howe
Sullivan
Mcstay


* Howe and Sullivan came out in the black singlets. At the start of the session they all did some touch with a tennis ball. Once training commenced, Howe and Sullivan then went inside.
The others did some running.
Moore finished up early saying he was sore and a bit of pain. The others did a bit more running before finishing up and heading indoors.

The draftees did their warm up separate from the rest of the squad before they joined the group
Crisp and Pendles were briefly in the rehab group at the start, with Pendles getting some work done. Both joined the rest of the squad not too long after that.

Reef started with some drills, but his program today seemed to be agility as they ramp up his next steps as he heads toward full training.

Some centre bounce work involving Cameron, Sidey, Allan and Long, and then they went into line groups.
With the line groups:
Defenders: Josh, Houston, Pendles, Frampton. Reef. Perryman. Maynard. Cochran. Ryan. TJ. Smit
Forwards: Buller. Mccarthy. HH. Schutz. Hayes. Jamie. Howes. Saxena. Membrey. Swadling. Demattia and a surprise inclusion - Parker.

Some more centre bounce work with Steene, Lippa, Prindable, Nick, Steele and Jordy.


Mids: Cameron. Steene. Jordy. Andrrson. Sidey. Lippa. Prindable. Steele. Nick. Long.

They have a bit to do in terms of cleaning up their disposal by hand. Some sloppy handballs thats happening at the moment. Just got to be a bit more clean.

There was lots of focus on tackling and pressure in space, had Max Viney help out in these situations. We must have him on the payrole part time at this point.

There was also some work being done into playing the turnover game in a semi sort of match play toward the end where one team played attacking, and the other had to turn the ball over to go the other way.

 

[Jen2310]

 

[Sea fog]

Here is the Annabele report from fb so we have a few from those at the ground today

Midweek training report from Olympic Pk today
:
Players were out before 8.30 again today.

Conditions? Overcast sky veined by strips of light grey cloud which made for a pleasant temperature though the sun burst through late adding some warmth.

Who was missing? The perennially absent Hill was a no show, with Howe making a cameo appearance, while Sully wearing the black singlet completed some light skills with the rehab group on the pavilion side of the arena All from the latest draft cohort were there after completing their induction program yesterday.

Who was in the infirmary today? Regular post-Christmas inmates - Moore, Beau, IQ, Reef and McStay appeared, and they were joined by Crisp for this session. Jack showed no discomfort in the way he moved so maybe it was a minor ailment or part of overall training loads. Pendles made his way over to this area to be worked on early, before he completed the rest of training proper. IQ and Beau undertook a lot of running, as a pair, while McStay and Moore ran solo. The latter went for some treatment, was experiencing some pain and left the track early, albeit moving freely. Reef again completed a solid session, running a lot less today but focussing on agility work at a high octane pace. Interestingly the past two sessions, this group when rehabbing on the pavilion side engaged in a lot of close-in work, adding tennis balls, and the silver lining of being sidelined from main drills is that they were able to work intensively on sharpening their reflexes and there appeared to be some sort of competition taking place.

How did the main trainer warm up? A newish activity involved tackling and agility with the emphasis on footwork - the trainer in charge talked about not allowing hips to do the propelling work when change of direction was in play. Players were told to keep the reps sharp. There were activities in line groups with players in expected formations, though Houston was working out with the forwards. The rucks again did extensive work in the middle and at one -point the sharking players were there to assist the ruckmen in directing their taps. Interesting to see Prindable, Anderson and Roan Steele join the small selected group acting as mids. An example of composition of a line was defence - Pendles, Frampton, Tew, Maynard, Perryman, Cochran, Smit and Reef who took a break from rehabilitation. There was also some contesting work taking place, some work on agility, kicking in close and handball with tackling thrown into the mix. There was an extended whole ground ball movement activity which morphed into a pseudo match simulation.

On balance it was a truncated session with the focus centred around skills and unusually there was no running. This was partly due to the fact that hordes of kids had arrived decked out in their beloved stripes of polarity to take part in a clinic and they were enthusiastically anticipating photos and autograph opportunities with their favourites.
Jax Pendlebury was having a kick on the ground with a friend prior to training, while Cochran and Swadling came over to the fence to converse with what looked like family members, so maybe the interstate relations were in town.
Would expect Friday’s training if it’s the last before the mandated four day break to be an arduous one in the vein of previous sessions of this nature occurring before a bracket of time off.
Some random observations of players from this low key session:

In general I thought the overall skills were sloppier than most of the recent outings. There were some kicks falling too far in front of their target, or askew dampening the hopes of the recipients, while some handballs were too loopy and would have invited high pressure in the match day cauldron.

Harrison - doesn't appear to have lost any speed. Has intergrated well into matchplay. Could be eyeing a forward spot.

Swadling - am sanguine regarding his prospects - he moves so effortlessly, both fluently and with speed and executes skills which are polished, auguring well for the step up to the big time

Smit - continues to impress in terms of how he’s improved. The extra bulk appears to have imbued him with the confidence to compete in even more spirited fashion. He will be hard to outmark. Occasionally needs to improve his decision making, while his kicking can be a mixed bag.

Long - one of the standouts in terms of workrate and his kicking looked more on song today after spraying a few the other day. His follow-up work is excellent and his fitness allows him to run with impunity

Roan - like the #44, he is indefatigable in the way he covers territory, never relents, while his skills are more than adequate. An unfussed type who we can appreciate for being someone potentially very worthwhile who’s come to the club through the ‘backdoor’ route.

Hayes and Saxena - with a forward spot beckoning due to the Hill impasse, both have showed glimpses of form, with the latter promising a lot for the future with the exciting package he is shaping as. Both possess speed and skill and Hayes has benefited from the extra size he has added to his formerly very skinny frame.

Parker - an ebullient package who had a bit of a run in attack today. He looks like a flexible type who’s a ball of energy, tackling ferociously with a willing spirit. Hope he gets more game exposure this year. Always thought he would have been a better proposition than Howe in the prelim in which Jeremy predictably ran out of fuel not long after the main break.

Cochran - a fine specimen up close and is coming quietly along, gliding across the turf and executing his skills well but will be instructive to view how he handles the competitive matchplay when it ramps up. As an aside, Maynard looks finer, especially in the legs.

Buller - not hard to be bullish about Jack when he keeps competing well in the marking duels and over the past couple of sessions, he’s eclipsed Maynard in the air. During the early drills he was cracking jokes and showing his obvious enjoyment of being part of an AFL group. He has fitted seamlessly into the set-up.

Allan - thought he looked good with ball in hand again and he seems more inclined to want to link up with players more for the overlap which ensures he’s more involved. He needs to impose himself in the matchplay closer to the season to ensure he’s noticed by those who count.

JDG - the bonus of the summer remembering how little we saw of his upper level last year. With the platform he’s establishing during this pre-season we hope to see more than just flashes of brilliance from him. He’s been spending time with the mids and forwards.

Anderson - by dint of what she’s shown during these sessions and his seasoned body he should come under selection scrutiny early and depending on the fitness of some of the veteran types could force his way into the team.

Prindable - was busy again and his neat skills were in evidence. His left foot could become a weapon as he generally kicks with precision and castigates himself when he errs.

Frampton - looks in great shape and is defending well. Kane Cornes implies he’s a spud but he’s already proven him wrong. He even went so far as to say that if Collingwood with Frampton and Moore as their key defenders can make a preliminary final, it shouldn't be a stretch for the likes of the Dogs, notorious for their porous defence.